Written Answers Wednesday 12 November 2008

Scottish Executive

Agriculture

Rhoda Grant (Highlands and Islands) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive under what circumstances a farm inspection would be suspended.

Richard Lochhead: EC regulations state that inspections shall in general be unannounced. There are provisions within these announcement rules that allow exceptionally up to 48 hours notice in instances where it is known, for example, to be difficult to gather stock or in remote island situations. Thereafter any request from a producer to postpone an inspection would be treated on a case-by-case basis. Postponement would be considered, for example, where there had been a sudden family bereavement, a serious disease outbreak or the producer was suddenly taken ill and no other responsible person was available.

Agriculture

Rhoda Grant (Highlands and Islands) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how much notice of a farm inspection should be given to a farmer.

Richard Lochhead: Provided that the purpose of the control is not jeopardised, on-the-spot checks may be announced. The announcement shall be strictly limited to the minimum time period necessary and shall not exceed 14 days.

  However, for on-the-spot checks concerning livestock aid applications, the notice mentioned in the first subparagraph shall, except in duly justified cases, not exceed 48 hours. Furthermore, where the legislation applicable to the acts and standards relevant to cross-compliance requires the on-the-spot check to be unannounced, those rules shall also apply in the case of on-the-spot-checks related to cross-compliance.

Alcohol Misuse

Bill Wilson (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it estimates what proportion of GDP is attributable to spending on unnecessary health care, accident repairs, underage drinking and smoking, or the drug culture and, if so, what its estimate is and how such economic activity is excluded from its measures of sustainable economic growth.

Shona Robison: The Scottish Government does not, through its GDP statistics, estimate the proportion of GDP that is attributable to spending on the activities listed by the member. However, the Scottish Government is aware of the importance of such issues and collects a range of statistics that enable us to monitor behaviours, and consumption activity in many of these areas.

  Given the importance of these issues the Scottish Government has commissioned research to estimate the potential impacts of such behaviours on the economy. For example, in May 2008 the Scottish Government published an updated report on the Costs of Alcohol Use and Misuse in Scotland, which provides an estimate of the annual cost to the Scottish economy as a result of alcohol misuse.

Alcohol Misuse

Robert Brown (Glasgow) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how much it has spent on alcohol referral services for children and young people since May 2007.

Kenny MacAskill: This information is not held centrally. The Scottish Government provides funding for alcohol services through NHS boards and local Alcohol and Drug Action Teams (ADATs). It is for ADATs and boards to decide which services to fund based on identified local need.

  In our first budget we allocated a record additional £85 million over three years for tackling alcohol misuse, the majority of which will be spent on increasing access to early intervention and treatment and support services.

Alcohol Misuse

Gavin Brown (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many off-licenses in the Lothians have been found to sell alcohol to people under 18 in each of the last five years, broken down by local authority.

Kenny MacAskill: The available information is provided in the following table:

  Number of offences recorded by the police in the Lothians in which a licensed person has sold alcohol to a person under 18, over the last five financial years:

  


 2003-04
 2004-05
 2005-06
 2006-07
 2007-08


 City of Edinburgh
 11
 9
 17
 33
 19


 East Lothian
 0
 0
 3
 41
 20


 Midlothian
 6
 10
 12
 9
 17


 West Lothian
 1
 2
 1
 10
 43


 Lothians
 18
 21
 33
 93
 99

Animal Welfare

Peter Peacock (Highlands and Islands) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to include guidance to dog owners to avoid the use of animal training aids that inflict suffering or pain on a dog.

Richard Lochhead: We intend to include guidance on the use of electronic training aids in the Dog Welfare Code of Practice which is expected to be issued early next year. This guidance will be based on user manuals issued with products approved by the Electronic Collar Manufacturers Association.

  Once we have the results of studies from the Companion Animal Welfare Council and the Universities of Lincoln and Bristol the Dog Welfare Code can, if necessary, be amended.

Animal Welfare

Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it considers that local authority licensing of animal boarding establishments should require that any animals admitted have a current veterinary certificate of vaccination against diseases such as parvo virus and kennel cough and what legislative steps, if any, would be required to introduce such a mandatory condition.

Richard Lochhead: We have no plans to make it a requirement that animals have a current vaccination certificate again diseases such as parvo virus and kennel cough before being admitted to animal boarding establishments.

  Most boarding establishments do require this and we recognise that this is good practice. However, to make it a mandatory condition would remove the discretion which boarding establishments currently have. This allows them to admit unvaccinated animals in exceptional circumstances, for example, where an animal’s owner is unexpectedly admitted to hospital. In such cases, the only option could be the destruction of the animal.

  Powers do exist under section 26 of the Animal Health and Welfare (Scotland) Act 2006 which would allow Scottish ministers to make it an offence to admit animals to animal boarding establishments without such a certificate.

Autism

George Foulkes (Lothians) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what training exists to ensure that employment support workers take account of the needs of people with autism.

Shona Robison: We know that autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) organisations, such as National Autistic Society, provide autism awareness training and such training is available for all agencies to raise awareness of needs of people with autism. Some organisations also provide employment support services for people with ASD. However, the Scottish Government is not aware of specific training for employment support worker to ensure they take account of the needs of people with autism. One of the key elements the Supported Employment Framework is seeking to address is staff training and qualifications. The Supported Employment Framework is being jointly developed by Scottish Government and COSLA with other stakeholders.

Bankruptcy

Gavin Brown (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many people have been declared bankrupt in each quarter of 2008, also broken down by sheriffdom.

Fergus Ewing: The Accountant in Bankruptcy (AiB) maintains the Register of Insolvencies in Scotland and publishes statistics on personal insolvencies in Scotland by financial year and since 2005-06, by quarter, in their annual report.

  Prior to 1 April 2008, all petitions for bankruptcy were considered by the Scottish Courts and numbers were therefore recorded by sheriffdom and by sheriff court area within each sheriffdom.

  Since 1 April 2008, creditor petitions are considered by the sheriff and the Accountant in Bankruptcy has responsibility for bankruptcy awards as a result of debtor applications. Awards continue to be recorded by sheriffdom area and awards as a result of creditor petitions can be further broken down by sheriff court. Information in respect of debtor applications can be shown by sheriffdom area but are not allocated to individual sheriff court areas.

  The following table provides the number of bankruptcies for quarter 4 of financial year 2007-08 (1 January to 31 March 2008) and for quarters 1 and 2 of 2008-09 (1 April to 30 June and 1 July to 30 September 2008). There has been a significant increase in the number of people becoming bankrupt in Scotland since 1 April 2008 compared to previous years. This increase is attributed to the bankruptcy reforms contained in the Bankruptcy and Diligence etc. (Scotland) Act 2007 including the introduction of the ‘Low Income, Low Asset’ (LILA) route for debtors applying for their own bankruptcy.

  Further information, including the AiB annual reports, can be found on the Accountant in Bankruptcy’s website at www.aib.gov.uk.

  Number of Awards of Bankruptcy by Sheriffdom and Sheriff Court

  

 Sheriffdom (Sheriff Court)
 1 January to 31 March 2008
 1 April to 30 June 2008
 1 July to 30 September 2008


 Tayside, Central and Fife 
 
 
 


 Awarded by AiB
 
 540
 701


 Alloa
 15
 4
 5


 Arbroath
 16
 4
 4


 Cupar
 15
 6
 6


 Dundee 
 86
 105
 14


 Dunfermline 
 41
 22
 26


 Falkirk 
 61
 20
 28


 Forfar
 18
 4
 1


 Kirkcaldy
 53
 17
 28


 Perth
 45
 11
 11


 Stirling 
 18
 8
 4


 Total awards for Sheriffdom
 368
 741
 828


 South Strathclyde, Dumfries and Galloway
 
 
 


 Awarded by AiB
 
 428
 681


 Airdrie
 66
 30
 41


 Ayr 
 42
 10
 39


 Dumfries 
 32
 4
 14


 Hamilton 
 130
 57
 45


 Kirkcudbright
 2
 1
 1


 Lanark
 12
 7
 16


 Stranraer
 3
 0
 7


 Total awards for Sheriffdom
 287
 537
 844


 North Strathclyde 
 
 
 


 Awarded by AiB
 
 231
 456


 Campbeltown
 5
 2
 3


 Dumbarton
 48
 10
 16


 Dunoon
 3
 7
 3


 Greenock
 15
 8
 8


 Kilmarnock
 48
 30
 67


 Oban
 6
 4
 2


 Paisley
 93
 25
 36


 Rothesay
 0
 1
 0


 Total awards for Sheriffdom
 218
 318
 591


 Grampian, Highlands and Islands 
 
 
 


 Awarded by AiB
 
 364
 448


 Aberdeen
 50
 31
 23


 Banff 
 6
 4
 0


 Dingwall 
 4
 0
 3


 Dornoch
 4
 0
 0


 Elgin
 30
 5
 2


 Fort William 
 3
 0
 4


 Inverness 
 18
 16
 14


 Kirkwall 
 1
 1
 0


 Lerwick 
 2
 2
 0


 Lochmaddy
 1
 0
 0


 Peterhead
 18
 15
 7


 Portree 
 4
 0
 2


 Stonehaven 
 7
 2
 2


 Stornoway 
 2
 2
 3


 Tain
 3
 3
 0


 Wick
 3
 0
 2


 Total awards for Sheriffdom
 156
 445
 510


 Lothian and Borders 
 
 
 


 Awarded by AiB
 
 329
 550


 Duns
 4
 1
 2


 Edinburgh 
 119
 56
 73


 Haddington
 30
 36
 84


 Jedburgh
 4
 0
 3


 Linlithgow
 41
 26
 24


 Peebles
 2
 3
 0


 Selkirk
 9
 1
 2


 Total awards for Sheriffdom
 209
 452
 738


 Glasgow and Strathkelvin
 
 
 


 Awarded by AiB
 
 276
 428


 Glasgow 
 206
 84
 116


 Total awards for Sheriffdom
 206
 360
 544


 Total awards for Scotland
 1,444
 2,853
 4,055



  Source: Accountant in Bankruptcy.

Bathing Waters

Elaine Murray (Dumfries) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive which beaches failed to meet the minimum legal standard for cleanliness in (a) 2003, (b) 2004, (c) 2005, (d) 2006, (e) 2007 and (f) 2008.

Michael Russell: The following designated bathing waters failed to meet the minimum microbiological standards under the EC Bathing Water Directive (76/160/EEC):

  (a) 2003 - Brighouse Bay (Dumfries and Galloway), Ettrick Bay (Argyll and Bute), Rockcliffe (Dumfries and Galloway) (3 out of 60)

  (b) 2004 - Carrick (Dumfries and Galloway), Ettrick Bay (Argyll and Bute), Irvine (North Ayrshire), Southerness (Dumfries and Galloway) (4 out of 60)

  (c) 2005 - Eyemouth (Scottish Borders), Nairn (East) (Highland), Stonehaven (Aberdeenshire) (3 out of 60)

  (d) 2006 - All bathing waters complied

  (e) 2007 - Ayr (South Beach) (South Ayrshire), Ettrick Bay (Argyll and Bute), Eyemouth (Scottish Borders), Irvine (North Ayrshire), Girvan (South Ayrshire), Prestwick (South Ayrshire), Sandyhills (Dumfries and Galloway) (7 out of 61)

  (f) 2008 - Aberdeen (Aberdeen City), Cruden Bay (Aberdeenshire), Ettrick Bay (Argyll and Bute), Portobello (Central) (City of Edinburgh), Rosehearty (Aberdeenshire), Saltcoats/Ardrossan (North Ayrshire), Sandyhills (Dumfries and Galloway) (7 out of 80).

Cancer

Marlyn Glen (North East Scotland) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what percentage of eligible women was screened for cervical cancer in the NHS Tayside area in each of the last 10 years, also broken down by age group.

Shona Robison: Information Services Division (ISD) have provided the percentage of uptake for Cervical Screening by age group in Tayside NHS Board, 1 April 1997 to 31 March 2008, these are:

  Percentage Uptake1,2 of Females Who Had a Record of a Previous Smear Taken Within Last 5.5 Years

  

 Age group
 1997-98
 1998-99
 1999-00
 2000-01
 2001-02
 2002-03
 2003-04
 2004-05
 2005-06
 2006-07
 2007-08


 20-24
 61.0
 58.5
 58.7
 67.9
 67.5
 67.0
 64.7
 61.6
 59.2
 56.8
 54.2


 25-29
 82.3
 81.5
 82.2
 83.4
 84.0
 82.7
 81.4
 79.4
 77.5
 75.0
 73.4


 30-34
 87.5
 87.0
 87.0
 88.5
 88.5
 87.9
 86.9
 85.7
 84.1
 83.0
 81.4


 35-39
 89.1
 89.1
 89.9
 91.6
 91.1
 91.0
 90.5
 88.8
 87.5
 86.1
 85.3


 40-44
 90.6
 90.1
 90.4
 92.0
 91.6
 91.1
 91.1
 90.7
 90.0
 88.8
 87.8


 45-49
 92.2
 91.8
 91.4
 92.6
 92.4
 91.8
 91.0
 90.0
 89.0
 88.1
 87.6


 50-54
 91.4
 91.4
 91.8
 92.0
 91.5
 91.2
 90.9
 89.7
 88.8
 88.1
 87.1


 55-59
 87.1
 86.5
 87.4
 88.6
 88.7
 88.8
 88.7
 87.8
 86.7
 85.6
 86.0


 60-64
 72.8
 73.0
 74.1
 70.5
 69.7
 69.9
 69.8
 72.1
 71.9
 73.3
 86.8


 Target age group 20-60
85.4
84.5
84.9
87.2
87.1
86.6
85.8
84.3
82.8
81.3
80.1



  Percentage Uptake1,2 of Females Who Had a Record of a Previous Smear Taken Within Last 3.5 Years

  

 Age group
 1997-98
 1998-99
 1999-00
 2000-01
 2001-02
 2002-03
 2003-04
 2004-05
 2005-06
 2006-07
 2007-08


 20-24
 58.2
 55.5
 55.6
 64.1
 64.1
 63.2
 61.0
 57.9
 55.8
 53.3
 51.0


 25-29
 73.4
 74.1
 74.7
 75.3
 76.4
 75.4
 74.0
 70.8
 68.4
 65.4
 63.7


 30-34
 81.1
 80.2
 80.2
 80.9
 81.3
 81.2
 79.5
 76.8
 75.0
 73.5
 72.1


 35-39
 83.0
 82.7
 83.4
 84.4
 84.3
 84.5
 83.2
 80.2
 78.5
 77.3
 76.4


 40-44
 84.2
 83.7
 84.3
 85.2
 85.1
 85.0
 84.4
 82.9
 81.4
 80.3
 79.6


 45-49
 85.8
 85.6
 85.3
 85.9
 86.1
 85.4
 83.9
 82.4
 81.0
 79.9
 79.6


 50-54
 84.8
 85.3
 85.1
 85.4
 85.7
 85.5
 84.4
 82.4
 81.4
 80.5
 79.4


 55-59
 80.7
 80.9
 81.9
 82.2
 82.9
 83.4
 82.4
 81.0
 79.6
 78.5
 79.1


 60-64
 48.4
 51.9
 51.9
 42.1
 44.3
 47.3
 47.0
 49.5
 49.4
 50.4
 70.9


 Target age group 20-60
79.4
78.5
78.9
80.5
80.9
80.6
79.2
76.8
75.1
73.5
72.5



  Ref: IR2008-02559.

  Source: ISD(D)4 Legacy applications for 1997-98 to 2006-07 data.

  Source: ISD(D)4 SCCRS for 2007-08 data (Version 22092008 12:30).

  Notes:

  1. Based on adjusted Community Health Index (CHI) population denominator (excluding medically ineligible women) for years 1997-98 to 2006-07. Based on SCCRS population denominator (excluding medically ineligible women) for 2007-08.

  2. Numerator figures from 1997-98 to 2006-07 are derived from GP self-reporting claim forms submitted to Primary Care Finance in support of claims for target payments. Numerator figures for 2007-08 are derived from smear tests recorded on SCCRS (Scottish Cervical Call Recall System).

  Cervical screening year runs from 1 April to 31 March.

  Further data on cervical screening is presented for Scotland, health board or laboratory at www.isdscotland.org/cervical_screening.

Cancer

Marlyn Glen (North East Scotland) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what percentage of eligible women was screened for cervical cancer in each of the last 10 years, also broken down by age group.

Shona Robison: Information Services Division (ISD) have provided the percentage of uptake for Cervical Screening by age group in Scotland 1 , 1 April 1997 to 31 March 2008, these are:

  Percentage Uptake 2,3 of Females Who Had a Record of a Previous Smear Taken Within Last 5.5 Years

  

 Age group
 1997-98
 1998-99
 1999-00
 2000-01
 2001-02
 2002-03
 2003-04
 2004-05
 2005-06
 2006-07
 2007-08


 20-24
 66.3
 64.7
 63.3
 64.2
 64.1
 63.5
 62.6
 60.7
 58.8
 56.6
 53.2


 25-29
 85.9
 85.3
 84.9
 84.5
 84.1
 83.5
 83.0
 81.8
 80.7
 79.0
 73.3


 30-34
 89.8
 89.5
 89.4
 89.2
 88.9
 88.2
 87.8
 86.9
 85.9
 84.9
 78.4


 35-39
 91.3
 91.0
 91.1
 90.9
 90.8
 90.4
 89.9
 89.0
 88.4
 88.5
 82.0


 40-44
 92.2
 91.9
 92.0
 91.6
 91.6
 91.2
 90.2
 89.9
 89.6
 88.7
 84.1


 45-49
 93.1
 92.9
 92.7
 92.3
 92.2
 91.7
 91.2
 90.3
 89.7
 88.8
 85.0


 50-54
 91.0
 91.0
 91.3
 91.0
 91.1
 90.9
 90.6
 89.8
 89.3
 88.4
 84.5


 55-59
 85.5
 85.6
 86.7
 87.1
 87.6
 87.8
 87.7
 87.3
 86.8
 86.1
 82.9


 60-64
 70.2
 71.3
 72.0
 72.4
 74.0
 75.6
 76.7
 77.2
 76.9
 76.9
 81.1


 Target age group 20-60
87.0
86.6
86.7
86.5
86.5
86.0
85.5
84.6
83.8
82.6
77.9



  Percentage Uptake 2,3 of Females Who Had a Record of a Previous Smear Taken Within Last 3.5 Years

  

 Age group
 1997-98
 1998-99
 1999-00
 2000-01
 2001-02
 2002-03
 2003-04
 2004-05
 2005-06
 2006-07
 2007-08


 20-24
 64.2
 62.6
 61.3
 62.1
 62.3
 61.7
 60.9
 59.1
 57.2
 55.2
 50.2


 25-29
 80.6
 79.8
 79.5
 79.0
 78.9
 78.2
 77.5
 76.1
 74.5
 72.3
 63.3


 30-34
 84.7
 84.2
 84.1
 84.1
 83.9
 83.2
 82.3
 81.0
 79.4
 78.0
 68.8


 35-39
 86.0
 85.5
 85.7
 85.6
 85.8
 85.4
 84.5
 83.2
 82.0
 80.6
 72.8


 40-44
 86.3
 85.9
 86.1
 86.1
 86.4
 86.1
 84.9
 84.2
 83.1
 82.0
 75.3


 45-49
 86.8
 86.4
 86.5
 86.4
 86.8
 86.1
 85.5
 84.3
 83.2
 82.1
 76.5


 50-54
 84.5
 84.6
 85.1
 85.1
 85.7
 85.5
 85.0
 84.0
 82.8
 81.7
 76.3


 55-59
 79.2
 79.5
 80.8
 81.4
 82.5
 82.7
 82.3
 81.6
 80.5
 79.6
 75.3


 60-64
 53.2
 54.2
 55.4
 54.7
 56.8
 58.8
 59.5
 59.4
 57.7
 57.8
 67.6


 Target age group 20-60
81.7
81.2
81.4
81.4
81.7
81.2
80.6
79.3
78.0
76.5
69.7



  Ref: IR2008-02530.

  Source: ISD(D)4 Legacy applications for 1997-98 to 2006-07 data.

  Source: ISD(D)4 SCCRS for 2007-08 data (Version 22092008 12:30).

  Notes:

  1. Excludes Lothian NHS Board from 1997-98 to 2006-07 (data calculated on a different basis - calendar year).

  2. Based on adjusted Community Health Index (CHI) population denominator (excluding medically ineligible women) for years 1997-98 to 2006-07.

  Based on SCCRS population denominator (excluding medically ineligible women) for 2007-08.

  3. Numerator figures from 1997-98 to 2006-07 are derived from GP self-reporting claim forms submitted to Primary Care Finance in support of claims for target payments.

  Numerator figures for 2007-08 are derived from smear tests recorded on SCCRS (Scottish Cervical Call Recall System).

  Cervical screening year runs from 1 April to 31 March.

  Further data on cervical screening is presented for Scotland, health board or laboratory at www.isdscotland.org/cervical_screening.

Care of the Elderly

Iain Gray (East Lothian) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many East Lothian residents are in NHS care awaiting an appropriate care package because of a lack of funding from East Lothian Council.

Shona Robison: At the latest validated census (July 2008) there were no East Lothian residents delayed as a direct result of awaiting funding.

Central Heating

Rhoda Grant (Highlands and Islands) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what it calculates to be the cost of supply and installation of an oil-fired central heating system in a three-bedroomed house in the Western Isles.

Stewart Maxwell: The average cost of an oil-fired central heating installation in a three-bedroom house in the Western Isles, as indicated by the managing agent, is shown in the following table:

  

 Number of Radiators Provided
 Average Cost


 6
£7,769


 7
£8,200


 Overall Average
£7,954



  Notes:

  1. The average cost shown is calculated on all oil installations undertaken in the Western Isles between October 2006 and September 2008.

  2. Costs are inclusive of vat at 5%.

  3. The average cost shown is inclusive of all necessary insulation provided.

  4. The average cost provided does not include work requested by the householder outside the programme such as additional radiators.

  5. A householder can have up to seven radiators installed, depending on the size of the property.

Central Heating

Rhoda Grant (Highlands and Islands) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many pensioners’ central heating systems were installed in the (a) Highland, (b) Moray, (c) Argyll and Bute, (d) Shetland, (e) Western Isles and (f) Orkney council areas in each of the last eight quarters.

Stewart Maxwell: Information is not held by local authority area.

Central Heating Programme

Rhoda Grant (Highlands and Islands) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it is taking to raise awareness of the central heating programme.

Stewart Maxwell: The Scottish Government website contains information on the programme including a video of a householder who has benefited from a central heating installation.

  The managing agent is responsible for raising awareness of the programme and undertakes a number of activities to achieve this aim such as the marketing/networking promotional week undertaken in the Western Isles in August 2008. The managing agent keeps in contact with organisations who have an interest in raising awareness of the programme such as Help the Aged, Age Concern and the Citizen Advice Bureau and provides them with information leaflets and advice. Additionally articles regularly appear in the national and local press such as the West Highland Free Press at the end of October.

Climate Change

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had with the UK Government regarding the European Commission’s energy and climate change proposals.

Jim Mather: The Scottish Government has been in regular contact with the UK Government on the European Commission’s energy and climate change proposals since they were announced in January, and is contributing to the agreed UK negotiating position ahead of the package being agreed later this year.

Community Wardens

Richard Baker (North East Scotland) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it considers it appropriate for local authorities to combine the role of community warden with that of traffic warden.

Fergus Ewing: Following the concordat between COSLA and the Scottish Government, it is now the responsibility of local authorities to determine the scope of warden services and the wardens’ role.

  Where prudent and where local needs dictate, local authorities may extend the duties of community wardens in a manner that meets these needs. If combining the role of community warden with that of traffic warden is deemed appropriate in the local circumstances, then the local authority and police could work together to ensure that local needs are fulfilled.

Community Wardens

Richard Baker (North East Scotland) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many community wardens there have been in each local authority in each year since their introduction.

Fergus Ewing: I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-7058 on 7 December 2007. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx .

Community Wardens

Richard Baker (North East Scotland) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how much money has been invested in community warden schemes in each year since their introduction, broken down by local authority.

Fergus Ewing: I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-7746 on 19 December 2007. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx .

Dentistry

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-16356 by Shona Robison on 30 September 2008, what the difference is between dental bodies corporate, general dental practitioners (with partners or a sole trader) and commercial companies in terms of the provision of NHS general dental services.

Shona Robison: Only individual general dental practitioners can join NHS board dental lists in order to provide general dental services – the arrangement is with the individual dentist, not with the practice nor the partnership if one exists.

  Dental bodies corporate and commercial companies cannot currently provide general dental services, although individual dentists working for dental bodies corporate can join NHS board lists in order to provide general dental services. Provisions are being made to list dental bodies corporate. Information about the listing of Dental Bodies Corporate is set out in the answer to S3W-17131 on 12 November 2008. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at:

  http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx.

  Commercial companies will not be able to be listed to provide general dental services unless they constitute a dental body corporate, which has to have a majority of directors who are registered dentists or registered dental care professionals or a combination of dentists and dental care professionals.

Dentistry

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-16358 by Shona Robison on 30 September 2008, when dental bodies corporate will be able to be listed with NHS boards for the provision of general dental services.

Shona Robison: Amendments are required to the NHS (General Dental Services) (Scotland) Regulations 1996 to provide for the listing of dental bodies corporate. Work is currently ongoing on the consolidation of these regulations and the amendments required to list dental bodies corporate will be made as part of that consolidation.

Dentistry

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-16358 by Shona Robison on 30 September 2008, why dental bodies corporate will be listed with NHS boards for the provision of general dental services while similar bodies will be barred from providing GP services.

Shona Robison: There is a long history of dentists providing a mixture of NHS and private treatment so we do not see difficulties in a properly constituted dental body corporate providing NHS dentistry. Dental bodies corporate are required to have a majority of directors that are registered dentists or dental care professionals, or a combination of both. The listing of dental bodies corporate will in future allow NHS boards to manage properly the relationship with such providers and, where necessary, take action against the dental body corporate.

  In contrast, general practice accounts for the vast majority of patient contacts with the NHS and often deals with the most important of life events. General practices are the gatekeepers to the rest of the NHS and it is essential that they are owned and run by individuals personally involved in the delivery of NHS services. That is why the Scottish Government does not consider the delivery of general practice by commercial organisations, driven by financial interest of shareholders, to be compatible with our policy of a mutual NHS.

Dentistry

Marlyn Glen (North East Scotland) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what percentage of (a) adults and (b) children was registered with an NHS dentist in June 2008, broken down by community health partnership area, and what the comparable figures were in March 2008.

Shona Robison: The information by Community Health Partnership for March 2007 to June 2008 is published at:

  http://www.isdscotland.org/isd/servlet/FileBuffer?namedFile=dent_reg_table2_june08.xls&pContentDispositionType=attachment.

  The information does not represent the percentage of people in each Community Health Partnership who are registered. Registrations (numerator) are based on the postcode of the practice where the patient has registered with a general dental practitioner. The population (denominator) is based on where the patient resides, in this case the Community Health Partnership. In some cases, the number of registrations may exceed the actual number of "people" in the chosen population.

Dentistry

Marlyn Glen (North East Scotland) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many general, hospital and community dentists there were in NHS Tayside in (a) March 2008 and (b) March 2007, expressed as a head count and by whole-time equivalent.

Shona Robison: The head count information for NHS Tayside is shown in the following table.

  Hospital and community dentist data is only available as at 30 September and is also shown. Information on the whole-time equivalent of staff working in the NHS general dental service is not available as the working hours of each dentist are not collected.

  Number of Dentists1 Providing NHS General Dental Services; in NHS Tayside; at 31 March

  

 
 2007
 2008


 Number of Dentists (Head Count)
 216
 220



  Whole-Time Equivalent (WTE) and Head Count of Hospital and Community Dentists; in NHS Tayside; at 30 September2

  

 
 2006
 2007


 Head Count
 WTE
 Head Count
 WTE


 Hospital dentists
 77
 51.9
 70
 51.0


 Community dentists
 29
 23.9
 40
 33.0



  Source: MIDAS (Management Information & Dental Accounting System). MEDMAN (Medical and Dental Manpower)

  Notes:

  1. The number of NHS non-salaried and salaried principals, assistants and vocational dental practitioners, based on the location of the dental practice.

  2. Data as at 30 September 2008 is due to be published on 16 December 2008.

Dentistry

Marlyn Glen (North East Scotland) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many NHS dental patients have been newly registered in NHS Tayside in each of the last 12 months for which information is available.

Shona Robison: Latest available information on newly registered patients in NHS Tayside in each of the last 12 months is presented in the following table.

  Number of newly registered NHS dental patients in NHS Tayside in each month from November 2007 to October 2008:

  Number of Newly Registered Patients not Previously Registered with a Dentist in Tayside

  

 Month
 in 12 Months Preceding1,2
 Since October 19902,3


 November 2007
 2,155
 1,178


 December 2007
 1,547
 852


 January 2008
 2,043
 1,145


 February 2008
 2,305
 1,281


 March 2008
 2,201
 1,159


 April 2008
 2,241
 1,261


 May 2008
 2,090
 1,167


 June 2008
 1,981
 1,048


 July 2008
 1,824
 984


 August 2008
 2,262
 1,301


 September 2008
 2,056
 1,213


 October 2008
 1,189
 792


 Total
 23,894
 13,381



  Notes:

  1. These patients were not registered with a dentist in NHS Tayside in the preceding 12 months.

  2. More recent figures will increase as a result of backdated registration claims which are yet to be received.

  3. Registration records in MIDAS (Management Information & Dental Accounting System) date from October 1990.

Dentistry

Marlyn Glen (North East Scotland) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many NHS dental patients have been deregistered in NHS Tayside in each of the last 12 months for which information is available.

Shona Robison: The available information is shown in the following table.

  NHS General Dental Service Patients Whose Registration Status Shows "Withdrawn"1,2 for NHS Tayside; Between July 2007 and June 2008

  

 Month
 2007-08


 July
 36


 August
 116


 September
 54


 October
 84


 November
 48


 December
 55


 January
 54


 February
 47


 March
 45


 April
 64


 May
 42


 June
 73



  Source: MIDAS (Management Information & Dental Accounting System).

  Notes:

  1. Based on patients whose registration status indicated "withdrawn" between the dates considered. This occurs when there is a request for the registration record to be withdrawn (made usually by the dentist, and subsequently approved by the NHS board). The numbers also include withdrawals carried out where more than one active registration exists for the same patient as part of data cleansing. Some patients whose registration has been withdrawn may register with another dentist under NHS arrangements elsewhere. There may also be retrospective additions to these data.

  2. If a patient has been withdrawn from more than one dental practice, they will be counted each time this happens. It is also possible for a patient to be counted in more than one month if they have moved to a dentist in a different month and have been withdrawn from a practice in a month where they have received NHS general dental services.

Education

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had with the UK Government and key stakeholders regarding the establishment of the second phase of the Erasmus Mundus programme.

Fiona Hyslop: The Scottish Government is in regular contact with the UK Government and key stakeholders in Scotland about European Union policy issues in education and lifelong learning, including the Erasmus Mundus Programme. We support the development of the second phase of the programme and we look forward to its approval before the end of the year.

Environment

Sarah Boyack (Edinburgh Central) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-10724 by Michael Russell on 13 March 2008, which issues were identified as requiring attention and what steps have been taken in the normal course of government business or are planned in the near future; in particular, what steps have been taken in relation to (a) a specialist environmental court, (b) dispute resolution, (c) public participation and access to justice and (d) the EU environmental liability directive and, if no steps have been taken or are planned, why these matters are no longer considered to require attention.

Michael Russell: Scottish ministers are not persuaded of the need for a specialist environmental court.

  They will however shortly be seeking the Lord President’s views on ordinary court procedures with particular reference to meeting the requirements of the Aarhus Convention and European Directives for public participation in environmental decision making. As notified through the UK Government to the European Commission on 5 September 2008, this will cover decision making in relation to the EU Environmental Liability Directive.

  The second public consultation exercise on the EU Environmental Liability Directive ran from 16 May to 8 August 2008. The draft Environmental Liability (Prevention and Remediation) (Scotland) Regulations published with the consultation are being revised with stakeholders. The revised regulations will be laid shortly.

  More generally, the Scottish Government supports the use of alternative dispute resolution where it is feasible and appropriate to do so and is funding a number of mediation projects across a range of policy areas, currently including health, justice, housing and education.

European Funding

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had with key stakeholders regarding the Interreg IV Cross Border Programme 2007-2013.

Jim Mather: The Cross Border Cooperation Programme brings a welcome €192 million of EU investment to a €256 million programme for the cross border region, which includes parts of Western Scotland. It provides an opportunity for Scottish organisations to collaborate with Irish and Northern Irish partners in developing creative and innovative projects that will bring long-term economic and social benefits to the cross border area.

  In order to best facilitate and encourage Scottish participation in the Programme a National Contact Point (NCP) for Scotland, hosted by Scotland Europa, has been appointed. The role of the NCP is to engage directly with stakeholders, provide support and advice to potential project applicants and to coordinate activity involving Scottish organisations.

  Additionally, Scottish Government officials work closely with the Programme’s Managing Authority and Secretariat, the Special EU Programmes Body (SEUPB), and their Irish and Northern Irish counterparts to promote eligible Scottish projects to the best advantage. Officials also meet regularly with the key Scottish partners who provide representation on the main programme committees and contribute to briefings and information sessions for stakeholders and other interested parties.

European Funding

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had with North Ayrshire Council regarding the Interreg IV Cross Border Programme 2007-2013.

Jim Mather: The Cross Border Cooperation Programme brings a welcome €192 million of EU investment to a €256 million programme for the cross border region, which includes parts of Western Scotland. It provides an opportunity for Scottish organisations to collaborate with Irish and Northern Irish partners in developing creative and innovative projects that will bring long-term economic and social benefits to the cross border area.

  In order to best facilitate and encourage Scottish participation in the Programme a National Contact Point (NCP) for Scotland, hosted by Scotland Europa, has been appointed. The role of the NCP is to engage directly with stakeholders, provide support and advice to potential project applicants and to coordinate activity involving Scottish organisations. Discussions on potential projects have been held between the NCP and North Ayrshire Council.

  Additionally, Scottish Government officials work closely with the Programme’s Managing Authority and Secretariat, the Special EU Programmes Body (SEUPB), and their Irish and Northern Irish counterparts to promote eligible Scottish projects to the best advantage. Officials also meet regularly with the key Scottish partners who provide representation on the main programme committees and contribute to briefings and information sessions for stakeholders and other interested parties.

European Funding

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what assistance it has given stakeholders who apply to the Interreg IV Cross Border Programme 2007-2013.

Jim Mather: The Cross Border Cooperation Programme brings a welcome €192 million of EU investment to a €256 million programme for the cross border region, which includes parts of Western Scotland. It provides an opportunity for Scottish organisations to collaborate with Irish and Northern Irish partners in developing creative and innovative projects that will bring long-term economic and social benefits to the cross border area.

  In order to best facilitate and encourage Scottish participation in the Programme a National Contact Point (NCP) for Scotland, by Scotland Europa, has been appointed. The role of the NCP is to engage directly with stakeholders, provide support and advice to potential project applicants and to coordinate activity involving Scottish organisations.

  Additionally, Scottish Government officials work closely with the Programme’s Managing Authority and Secretariat, the Special EU Programmes Body (SEUPB), and their Irish and Northern Irish counterparts to promote eligible Scottish projects to the best advantage. Officials also meet regularly with the key Scottish partners who provide representation on the main programme committees and contribute to briefings and information sessions for stakeholders and other interested parties.

Firearms

Stuart McMillan (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many air weapon offences have been recorded in each local authority area in each of the last five years.

Kenny MacAskill: The information is given in the following table.

  Recorded Crimes and Offences involving air weapons, Scotland, 2003-04 to 2007-08

  

 Local Authority
 2003-04
 2004-05
 2005-06
 2006-07
 2007-08


 Aberdeen City
 6
 6
 5
 20
 7


 Aberdeenshire
 6
 5
 7
 13
 2


 Angus
 14
 8
 10
 7
 4


 Argyll and Bute
 4
 2
 3
 7
 12


 Clackmannanshire
 3
 6
 4
 5
 1


 Dumfries and Galloway
 14
 21
 10
 22
 17


 Dundee City
 28
 18
 13
 10
 17


 East Ayrshire
 3
 0
 12
 26
 30


 East Dunbartonshire
 4
 0
 3
 18
 10


 East Lothian
 11
 24
 20
 18
 24


 East Renfrewshire
 0
 0
 11
 7
 14


 Edinburgh City
 151
 147
 132
 98
 67


 Eilean Siar
 0
 0
 0
 0
 3


 Falkirk
 6
 17
 9
 6
 5


 Fife
 12
 6
 6
 35
 23


 Glasgow City
 19
 29
 113
 108
 99


 Highland
 0
 0
 0
 6
 20


 Inverclyde
 0
 8
 6
 11
 6


 Midlothian
 21
 43
 24
 20
 13


 Moray
 0
 1
 2
 11
 3


 North Ayrshire
 2
 18
 20
 25
 27


 North Lanarkshire
 6
 7
 28
 68
 39


 Orkney Islands
 0
 0
 0
 0
 2


 Perth and Kinross
 12
 11
 13
 6
 3


 Renfrewshire
 14
 3
 29
 13
 29


 Scottish Borders
 34
 20
 20
 9
 4


 Shetland Islands
 0
 0
 1
 1
 2


 South Ayrshire
 5
 0
 10
 15
 11


 South Lanarkshire
 10
 7
 33
 43
 22


 Stirling
 4
 3
 1
 3
 2


 West Dunbartonshire
 3
 2
 25
 22
 23


 West Lothian
 45
 74
 48
 31
 26


 Total
 437
 486
 618
 684
 567

Health

Gavin Brown (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what information it has on how many working days were lost in the Lothians region due to ill-health as a result of (a) depression and (b) other mental health problems in each of the last five years for which figures are available.

Shona Robison: The Labour Force Survey (LFS) collects information on sickness absence during the reference week (usually the week before the respondent was interviewed).

  The sample size of the LFS is not large enough to provide estimates of the number of working days lost because of sickness absence in the Lothians region as a result of depression and other mental health problems.

  Alternative sources of sickness absence data include the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) and the Confederation of British Industry (CBI).

Health

Rhoda Grant (Highlands and Islands) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what allowance is made in NHS board and local government grant allocations to compensate for higher fuel costs on Scottish islands.

Nicola Sturgeon: For NHS boards, the formula which is used to allocate funding for Hospital and Community Health Services and GP prescribing to boards takes into account the unavoidable excess costs associated with island locations. This ensures that the particular issues relating to delivery of services on the islands, including those arising from higher fuel costs, are fully recognised.

  In relation to local government grant allocations, no allowance is being made for higher fuel costs however, islands authorities benefit from the Special Islands Needs Allowance, a supplement added to a local authority’s grant allocation to reflect additional costs of a local authority to service its island communities. There are six beneficiaries of this supplement and, in total, they receive an additional £21.6million in 2008-09.

Health

George Foulkes (Lothians) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what funding is provided by it, its agencies or bodies for which it is responsible, to Brook Advisory Centres or any other body providing advice on abortion.

Shona Robison: The Scottish Government currently provides additional funding of £4.5 million each year to NHS boards to implement Respect and Responsibility, Scotland’s national sexual health strategy.

  In addition, the Scottish Government also provides a total of £312,000 each year to voluntary organisations such as Caledonia Youth, the Family Planning Association and to a national sexual health helpline which, as well as providing general sexual health information and advice, will provide advice on termination of pregnancy. The government does not provide direct funding to Brook Advisory Centres.

Health

Iain Gray (East Lothian) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive how many East Lothian residents are in NHS care awaiting an appropriate care package.

Shona Robison: At the latest validated delayed discharge census (July 2008) there were 22 East Lothian residents delayed in hospital awaiting an appropriate care package, four of whom had been delayed outwith the agreed six week discharge planning period.

  The next census (October 2008) will be published on 25 November and available at:

  http://www.isdscotland.org/isd/information-and-statistics.jsp?pContentID=2359&p_applic=CCC&p_service=Content.show&.

Housing

Rhoda Grant (Highlands and Islands) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it is planning to change the care and repair scheme into an equity release scheme.

Rhoda Grant (Highlands and Islands) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it plans to ask householders to raise capital privately under the care and repair scheme to be in place from April 2009.

Stewart Maxwell: The Scottish Government has no plans to change the care and repair scheme into an equity release scheme. The aim of the Scheme of Assistance provisions, which are being introduced under the previous administration’s Housing (Scotland) Act 2006, is to give local authorities wider powers to help homeowners repair, improve and adapt their homes. Authorities will need to consider to what extent loans, including equity loans, will play a part in expanding the range of assistance available. They will also need to consider how assistance might be delivered through care and repair projects and what forms that assistance would take.

Housing

Rhoda Grant (Highlands and Islands) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what safeguards will be built in to protect people who cannot raise funding privately or through equity release under the care and repair scheme to be in place from April 2009.

Stewart Maxwell: The Scheme of Assistance provisions which are being introduced under the previous Administrations Housing (Scotland) Act 2006 give local authorities wider powers to help homeowners repair, improve and adapt their homes. Authorities will need to consider to what extent loans, including equity loans, will play a part in expanding the range of assistance they make available. The Scottish Government does not expect local authorities or Care and Repair projects to act as lenders themselves and is pursuing supported lending to be available where there is no reasonable commercial option.

  For owners unable to access either commercial or supported lending options, it will be a matter for each authority, under the Scheme of Assistance, to determine whether grant or other assistance will be available in respect of repairs or improvements. Subject to parliamentary approval, Regulations will be introduced in April 2009 governing assistance for disabled owners undertaking adaptations. Where such owners face a funding shortfall, they will be entitled to receive targeted advice and support which may include, at the authority’s discretion, additional funding support.

Housing

Jamie Hepburn (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether obligations exist for factors to ensure best value in work that they undertake or commission on behalf of their clients.

Stewart Maxwell: The Scottish Housing Regulator has published a set of high-level performance standards that registered social landlords (RSLs) and local authorities should achieve across their range of housing services. The Performance Standards include the broad expectation that, in their factoring activities, local authorities and RSLs should be: " fair, efficient and effective factors for other property owners and manage factoring funds on behalf of owners in a proper and accountable manner ".

  There are no specific service standards laid down for private sector property managers and factors in relation to work that they undertake or commission on behalf of their clients. Those that are members of trade or professional bodies will be required by the body to comply with any code of practice that it has established. Otherwise service delivery by property managers and factors is a contractual matter between them and their customers, enforceable in the courts.

  The Scottish Government has announced plans to work with the industry to develop a national accreditation scheme for residential property managers that is open to local authorities and RSLs offering factoring services as well as private sector property managers. Property managers that join the scheme will have to meet high standards of service, including obtaining quotations for necessary works from a range of contractors, and could have their accreditation removed if they fail to meet standards.

Housing

Jamie Hepburn (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether advice is available to registered social landlords, who act as factors for owner-occupiers living in the same buildings as their tenants, to avoid conflicts of interest when deciding to improve those buildings resulting in costs to the owner-occupiers.

Stewart Maxwell: The Scottish Government has not published specific advice to registered social landlords who act as factors for owner-occupiers living in the same building as their tenants.

  There is some related guidance on the general subject of refurbishing blocks of flats that contain both social rented housing and owner-occupied housing given that the social rented element is required to meet the Scottish Housing Quality Standard. This is discussed in paragraphs 2.9-2.12 of the Scottish Housing Quality Standard Delivery Plan Guidance published in July 2004 which is available here:

  http://www.communitiesscotland.gov.uk/stellent/groups/public/documents/webpages/cs_007224.pdf.

  In addition, the Scottish Housing Regulator’s Performance Standards covers activities such as factoring and sets out a broad expectation for social landlords that provide factoring services should be:

   "fair, efficient and effective factors for other property owners and manage factoring funds on behalf of owners in a proper and accountable manner" (Performance Standard AS5.2).

  The electronic link to this and wider guidance on Performance Standards is available here:

  http://www.scottishhousingregulator.gov.uk/stellent/groups/public/documents/webpages/shr_as5.2factoring.hcsp#TopOfPage.

Justice

Margo MacDonald (Lothians) (Ind): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will outline its policy on armed protection for VIPs, either British or foreign nationals.

Kenny MacAskill: Policy relating to the protection of VIPs is reserved to the UK Government. It is an operational decision for the police to determine the level and type of protection provided to individual VIPs.

Ministerial Costs

George Foulkes (Lothians) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what the total cost was of the First Minister’s office in 2007-08, also broken down by different components, including staff, travel and entertainment costs.

John Swinney: The total spend for the First Minister’s office for 2007-2008 was £523,862. These are broken down as follows:

  

Staff 
£471,222


Travel 
£38,345


Hospitality 
£1,678


Administration
£12,617



  The comparative figure for 2006-07 was £638,356.

Ministerial Engagements

Lewis Macdonald (Aberdeen Central) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-13127 by John Swinney on 4 June 2008, when it will be able to publish details of how many ministerial engagements have been held in the Aberdeen Central parliamentary constituency since 16 May 2007, broken down by (a) ministerial portfolio, (b) date and (c) location.

John Swinney: I refer the member to the letter issued on 30 October 2008, a copy of which has been placed in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. number 45740).

Ministerial Meetings

George Foulkes (Lothians) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what recent discussions it has had with officers of the British Transport Police Authority and the British Transport Police; who was in attendance at such meetings; what topics were discussed, and what the outcomes were.

Stewart Stevenson: Scottish ministers meet regularly with the British Transport Policy Authority (BTPA) and British Transport Police (BTP) with attendance from relevant BTP/A and Scottish Government officials. Topics discussed at these meetings cover a range of issues of mutual interest such as delivering a safe railway environment in Scotland for the benefit of rail passengers.

Modern Apprenticeships

John Park (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has assessed the impact on work-based training providers of its decision to reduce funding for adult apprenticeships, with the exception of apprenticeships in engineering, construction and information technology.

Fiona Hyslop: An assessment of the potential impact of the changes to our national training programmes on training providers engaged with the modern apprenticeship programme across Scotland was undertaken.

NHS Staff

George Foulkes (Lothians) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what advice it gives to NHS boards regarding health service staff with moral or religious objections who wish to opt out of abortion procedures.

Shona Robison: The Abortion Act 1967 has a conscientious objection clause which permits health care staff to refuse to participate in terminations but which obliges them to provide necessary treatment in an emergency when the woman’s life may be jeopardised.

  While the Scottish Government does not provide direct guidance on this issue, which is a matter reserved to Westminster, guidance is provided by UK professional regulatory, and representative bodies such as the General Medical Council, the Nursing and Midwifery Council and the BMA.

Parliamentary Questions

George Foulkes (Lothians) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive when it will provide a substantive answer to question S3W-12149, which received a holding reply on 6 May 2008.

John Swinney: I refer the member to the letter issued on 12 November 2008. A copy of which has been placed in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. number 45492).

Poverty

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-16758 by Stewart Maxwell on 20 October 2008, whether it will list the specific projects being taken forward to research the experience of poverty in urban and rural areas; how much each specific project will cost, and when the findings will be published.

Stewart Maxwell: The specific projects being taken forward to research the experience of poverty in urban and rural areas are:

  1. The experience of poverty in rural Scotland

  EKOS Ltd were commissioned to explore the experience of poverty in rural Scotland: whether it is distinctive from the experience of poverty in urban Scotland and, if so, in what ways; and to suggest what the implications of any differences are for policies aimed at reducing poverty in rural areas and the ways in which these policies are delivered. EKOS Ltd have interviewed and held workshops with organisations, both national and local, that have contact with people in poverty in rural and urban areas. The cost of the research contract was £17,625 including VAT. A report on the research is being finalised and it is expected that it will be published on the Scottish Government Social Research Website by the end of December 2008.

  2. The cost of living in rural and urban areas

  Scottish Government analytical staff are conducting an analysis of data sources that can be used to inform understanding of the cost of living in rural and urban areas. This has imposed no cost to the budget for research. The findings will be published shortly on the Scottish Government Income and Poverty Statistics Website.

Poverty

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-16758 by Stewart Maxwell on 20 October 2008, when it expects to publish a new set of indicators that can better measure rural disadvantage.

Fergus Ewing: Research to be published shortly will help us better understand rural disadvantage. No decision has been made about whether to develop a set of indicators specifically to measure disadvantage in rural areas.

Poverty

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had with stakeholders in Scotland regarding promotion of the European Year for Combating Poverty and Social Exclusion in 2010.

Stewart Maxwell: Discussions with stakeholders on the promotion of the European Year for Combating Poverty and Social Exclusion in 2010 will take place following our discussions with the UK Government and will include the Poverty Alliance in Scotland, which will be part of the Implementation Body.

Poverty

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had with the UK Government regarding promotion in Scotland of the European Year for Combating Poverty and Social Exclusion in 2010.

Stewart Maxwell: The UK Government is in the process of setting up a National Implementation Body to agree proposals for appropriate activity to raise awareness of the European Year across the UK. This group will consist of representatives from across Whitehall, the devolved administrations, local government, as well as NGOs and people experiencing poverty. My officials will be represented on this group which will have an initial meeting to discuss proposals in December.

Prison Service

Robert Brown (Glasgow) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what level of prison population would have to be reached before it became necessary to use the emergency release power.

Kenny MacAskill: I have asked Mike Ewart, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:

  These matters are dependent upon a wide range of individual factors including the type and gender of the prison population and/or particular factors impacting on individual establishments.

Proceeds of Crime Act 2002

Gavin Brown (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how much money recovered from convicted criminals under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 has been spent in the Lothians region, broken down by (a) parliamentary constituency and (b) project.

Kenny MacAskill: CashBack for Communities funding has been granted to the Scottish Football Association (£2.2 million), the Scottish Rugby Union (£1.4 million), Scottish Sports Futures and BasketballScotland (£1.7 million), the Sports Facilities Fund (£2 million) and Arts and Business Scotland (£0.6 million), which will include support for activities in the Lothians region.

  Football activities in the Lothians include three programmes of street football across the region with a total of 42 projects delivered, seven Midnight Leagues in West Lothian, 46 schools enrolled in Soccer 1 and a "School of Football" for the South East region based in Dalkeith at Newbattle High School. Edinburgh City, East Lothian, Midlothian and West Lothian received £5,000 each for Midnight Leagues and Street Football.

  Over July, August and September, the Scottish Rugby Union (SRU) delivered rugby coaching to 3,223 young people in East Lothian, 655 in West Lothian and 2,622 in Edinburgh. This will continue throughout the year along with the SRU’s Street Rugby and senior pupil volunteer coaching programmes.

  Scottish Sports Futures is delivering basketball activities in Edinburgh through their recently-expanded programme of Twilight Leagues and Jump2It. They aim to connect and expand existing structures for basketball activities with a view to creating more opportunities for young people to participate.

  Monies recovered under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 are distributed through the CashBack for Communities programme, which includes a range of partnerships with Scottish sporting, arts and business associations to provide diversionary activities for young people in Scottish communities. £3 million of this funding is administered by YouthLink Scotland and is allocated by local authority rather than parliamentary constituency. The breakdown of spending by project in the Lothians region is as follows:

  

 East Lothian (allocated £31,000)
 
 


 Round 1: North Berwick Dry Bar Association (Youth Café)
£10,587.00
 


 
 Tranent Youth and community Facility 
£11,041.00


 
 Red School Youth Centre 
£9,372.00


 Total spent in East Lothian
£31,000.00
 


 Edinburgh (allocated £220,000)
 
 


 Round 1: Multi-cultural Family Base 
£25,977.00
 


 
 HayWired Ltd 
£10,458.00


 
 Sergeant of Leith Neighbourhood Action Unit
£18,616.00


 
 Circle
£22,095.00


 
 Edinburgh City Youth Café – 6VT Youth Café
£24,965.00


 
 Youth Bus Project – The Buz
£20,317.00


 
 Leith Acorn Centre YMCA
£12,319.00


 
 The BIG Project
£10,473.00


 
 Pilmeny Development Project
£2,080.00


 
 Wester Hailes Youth Agency
£6,654.00


 
 Craigmillar Adventure Project
£22,429.00


 Round 2: Rural and Urban Training Scheme Ltd 
£8,632.00
 


 
 The Ripple Project 
£15,890.00


 
 Sikh Sanjog 
£6,688.00


 
 Citadel Youth Centre 
£2,355.00


 
 The Rock Trust 
£4,713.00


 
 Fairbridge in Edinburgh 
£5,339.00


 Total spent in Edinburgh
£220,000.00
 


 Midlothian (allocated £33,000)
 
 


 Round 1: Gorebridge Community Development Trust
£8,132.00
 


 Round 2: Top Service
£4,730.00
 


 
 Mayfield & Easthouses Youth Project
£9,337.00


 
 Midlothian Young Peoples Advice Project
£10,800.00


 Total spent in Midlothian
£32,999.00
 


 West Lothian (allocated £71,000)
 
 


 Round 1: Bridgend Senior Youth Club
£12,600.00
 


 Round 2: Edinburgh and Lothians Racial Equality Council
£9,280.00
 


 
 Loganlea Miners Welfare Charitable Society
£9,798.00


 
 YWCA Livingston
£2,408.00


 Total spent in West Lothian
£34,086.00
 



  Note: Remainder of West Lothian allocation to be distributed after discussions with local council.

Renewable Energy

Peter Peacock (Highlands and Islands) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what research it has supported on the potential of growing algae for use as a fuel.

Jim Mather: The Scottish Government has not directly supported such research. However, we are currently consulting on our Renewable Energy Framework for Scotland, which seeks views on a comprehensive range of proposals aimed at making Scotland a world leader in green energy. This includes how best to encourage next generation bioenergy, including marine biomass.

Roads

George Foulkes (Lothians) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what contracts have been let for highways and related projects since May 2007; what the procedure was, and who the successful contractor was in each case.

Stewart Stevenson: Details of the 62 contracts for works, supplies and services in relation to trunk roads awarded since May 2007 are set out in the following tables :

  1. Works Contracts

  (i) Above EU threshold of £3,497,313.00 (€5,150,000.00)

  

 Title
 Procedure*
 Successful Tenderer


 A9 Helmsdale to Ord of Caithness Improvements - Phase 2
 Restricted
 RJ MacLeod (Contractors) Ltd


 M8/A8 Edinburgh to Greenock Trunk Road, M77 to Clyde Tunnel Westbound
 Restricted
 Tarmac Construction Ltd


 A77 Haggstone Climbing Lane and A77 Glen App Improvement
 Competitive Dialogue
 RJ MacLeod (Contractors) Ltd


 A9 Kincraig
 Restricted
 Ennstone Thistle


 Supply and Installation of Variable Message Signs (VMS) and Signal Units
 Restricted
 Techspan Systems


 A76 Glenairlie Improvement
 Restricted
 Raynesway Construction Limited


 M74 Junction 11 to Gleck and Bog Bridge Northbound
 Restricted
 Tarmac Construction Ltd


 M74 Completion Fullarton Road to West of Kingston Bridge
 Competitive Dialogue
 Interlink Joint Venture


 M8 Kingston Bridge Complex Bothwell Street Off Ramp Refurbishment
 Competitive Dialogue
 Graham Construction


 The M8 Harthill Footbridge Replacement
 Competitive Dialogue
 Raynesway Construction


 M74 Gleck and Bog to junction 11 Southbound
 Restricted
 Tarmac Construction Ltd



  (ii) Below threshold

  

 Title
 Procedure
 Successful Tenderer


 A95/A96 Keith Junction
 Competitive Tender
 Carillion


 A83 Arrochar
 Competitive Tender
 Ennstone Thistle


 M8 A8 Bishopton and M8 C22 Overbridge strengthening 
 Competitive Tender
 Barr Ltd


 A9 Auchterarder to Whitemoss Northbound
 Competitive Tender
 Tarmac Construction Ltd


 A96 Woodside to B9103
 Competitive Tender
 Ennstone Thistle


 M8 Dewshill to Shottsburn
 Competitive Tender
 Aggregate Industries


 M90 Craigend to Bridge of Earn Southbound
 Competitive Tender
 Ennstone Thistle


 A87 Varragill to Portree Phases 1 & 2
 Competitive Tender
 Leiths 


 A90 Powrie Brae to Inveraldie Northbound Carriageway
 Competitive Tender
 Tayside Contracts


 A82 810 Achnambeithach Bridge Replacement
 Competitive Tender
 Morrison Construction Ltd


 M8 Duntilland Quarry Eastbound
 Competitive Tender
 Tarmac Construction Ltd


 A90 Middle Essie
 Competitive Tender
 Ennstone Thistle


 A83 Inverary
 Competitive Tender
 Ennstone Thistle


 M80 Dunipace to Bankhead
 Competitive Tender
 Leiths


 A7/A6091 Kingsknowes Roundabout Improvement
 Competitive Tender
 Scottish Borders Council Roads DLO


 A92 Halbeath to Dundee Trunk Road, East Dock Street Safety Fencing
 Competitive Tender
 BEAR Scotland


 M8 High Mast Lighting Replacement Phase 6
 Competitive Tender
 Lightways Contractors Ltd


 A1 Oldcraighall to Wallford
 Competitive Tender
 Cemex


 M9 - A9 Overbridge to M80 Junction Westbound
 Competitive Tender
 Cemex


 A90 Oatyhill to Dubton Southbound
 Competitive Tender
 Ennstone Thistle


 Forth Replacement Crossing - Ground Investigation - Land Based South
 Competitive Tender
 Ritchies Limited


 Forth Replacement Crossing - Ground Investigation - Land Based North
 Competitive Tender
 Norwest Holst Limited


 Forth Replacement Crossing - Detailed Marine Ground Investigation
 Competitive Tender
 Glover Site Investigations


 A82 Pulpit Rock Ground Investigation
 Competitive Tender
 Structural Soils


 A82 Bilingual Signing
 Competitive Tender
 Corrie Construction Ltd


 A737/A738 St James Interchange Old Woodwynd Road to Skew Bridge
 Competitive Tender
 Tarmac Construction Ltd


 A90 Glendoick to Ardgaith – Eastbound Carriageway
 Competitive Tender
 Ennstone Thistle


 A737 Dalry Bypass: Phase 1 - Preliminary Ground Investigation
 Competitive Tender
 White Young Green


 M8/M74/M73 Concrete Repair
 Competitive Tender
 Laser Special projects Ltd


 M8 Blairmains to Blairmuckhill Eastbound
 Competitive Tender
 Tarmac Construction Ltd


 M8 Shotts Bridge - Refurbishment 
 Competitive Tender
 ERDC Group 


 A96 Moss Street Keith
 Competitive Tender
 Ennstone Thistle


 M73 Woodneuk Avenue & Johnston Road Bridge Painting
 Competitive Tender
 Mackenzie Construction Ltd


 A90 Finavon Junction 
 Competitive Tender
 Ennstone Thistle


 A90 The Snabs to Star Farm – Eastbound Carriageway 
 Competitive Tender
 Tayside Contracts


 A96 Darnaway Junction to Brodie 
 Competitive Tender
 Leiths (Scotland) Ltd



  2. Services and Supplies Contracts

  (i) Above EU threshold of £90,319.00 (€133,000.00)

  

 Title
 Procedure*
 Successful Tenderer


 Term contract for the supply of traffic monitoring units for Transport Scotland
 Restricted
 Applied Traffic


 A737 Dalry Bypass Consultancy Commission for Design Services
 Restricted
 Mouchel Fairhurst Joint Venture


 Term contract for the Supply of Traffic Monitoring Units (TMU's) for Transport Scotland
 Restricted
 Counters & Accessories


 Term Contract for the supply of traffic monitoring units (TMU's) for Transport Scotland
 Restricted
 TDC Systems


 First Generation Traffic Scotland Operator Service
 Restricted
 Atkins


 Forth Replacement Crossing Multi Disciplinary Management Consultancy Commission
 Competitive Dialogue
 Jacobs/Arup Joint Venture


 Forth Replacement Crossing - Geodetic Survey
 Restricted
 Blom Aerofilm Limited


 Multiple Framework Agreement for In-House Project Management Personnel for Trunk Road Schemes
 Restricted
 Faber Maunsell


 Multiple Framework Agreement for In-House Project Management Personnel for Trunk Road Schemes
 Restricted
 Grontmij


 Multiple Framework Agreement for In-House Project Management Personnel for Trunk Road Schemes
 Restricted
 Mouchel


 Multiple Framework Agreement for In-House Project Management Personnel for Trunk Road Schemes
 Restricted
 Mott MacDonald


 Multiple Framework Agreement for In-House Project Management Personnel for Trunk Road Schemes
 Restricted
 Scott Wilson


 Multiple Framework Agreement for In-House Project Management Personnel for Trunk Road Schemes
 Restricted
 Waterman Group


 Management, Operation and Development of the Scottish Roads Traffic Database (SRTDb)
 Restricted
 IBI Group


 Term Contract for the supply of traffic monitoring units (TMU's) for Transport Scotland
 Restricted
 See Tech Ltd



  Note: *The award procedures for above threshold procurements are set out in the EC Directives governing public sector procurement as implemented in Scotland by the Public Contracts (Scotland) Regulations SI 2006.

Roads

Jamie McGrigor (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to upgrade the A83 between Tarbert and Ardrishaig.

Stewart Stevenson: There are currently no plans to upgrade the A83 between Tarbert and Ardrishaig. However, Transport Scotland’s Strategic Transport Projects Review is examining the longer term needs of Scotland’s nationally strategic transport network. This includes consideration of the A83 as part of the transport corridor from Glasgow to Inverclyde and the Islands.

Roads

Alex Johnstone (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to upgrade the A82, broken down by specific planned improvement, timescale and costing for each.

Stewart Stevenson: Preliminary work is progressing in taking forward improvement schemes from the A82 Route Action Plan (RAP). This RAP outlined a 10 year improvement plan which includes improvements at Pulpit Rock, as well as a new Western Bypass at Crianlarich. The current programme anticipates that these improvement schemes, which will cost up to £20 million each, will commence in 2010-11. Further details of these schemes, which are included in our current programme of major trunk road and rail infrastructure improvements up until 2012, can be found on the Transport Scotland website at www.transportscotland.gov.uk .

  Transport Scotland’s Strategic Transport Projects Review is examining the longer term needs of Scotland’s nationally strategic transport network. This includes consideration of the A82 as part of the transport corridor from Glasgow to Oban/Fort William and the Western Isles.

  The STPR will recommend a programme of interventions for the period 2012 to 2022.

Roads

Alex Johnstone (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how much it has spent on upgrading the A82 in each of the last five years, broken down by individual completed project.

Stewart Stevenson: The following upgrading projects have been carried out on the A82 since 2003:

  

 Year
 Project
 Cost


 2006-07
 Loch Lomond Cycleway
£0.5 million


 2006-07
 Stoneymollan roundabout
£0.8 million


 2006-07
 Lairig Eilde Bridge
£5.75 million


 2007-08
 Fort William-Torlundy Community Link
£2 million


 2008-09
 Bilingual Signing Programme
£0.4 million


 2008-09
 Achnambeithach Bridge (on-going)
£2.5 million est.

Roads

Alex Johnstone (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many (a) accidents and (b) fatalities have occurred on the A82 in each of the last five years.

Stewart Stevenson: The number of (a) personal injury accidents and (b) fatalities on the A82 in each of the last five full years is as shown in the following table.

  A82 Accident Data

  

 Year
 Personal Injury Accidents
 Fatal Accidents
 Fatal Casualties


 2003
 166
 7
 7


 2004
 155
 6
 6


 2005
 148
 7
 9


 2006
 139
 7
 8


 2007
 159
 11
 11



  The figures quoted may differ slightly from those published elsewhere because they were extracted on a different date and the database may have changed between the two dates, e.g. due to late returns or corrections to earlier returns.

Scottish Enterprise

Lewis Macdonald (Aberdeen Central) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what capital or revenue support Scottish Enterprise provided to the (a) Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre (SECC), (b) Edinburgh International Conference Centre (EICC) and (c) Aberdeen Exhibition and Conference Centre (AECC) in 2007-08 and whether any such financial support will be provided within the current spending review period.

Jim Mather: This is an operational matter for Scottish Enterprise. I will ask its Chief Executive to write to the member in this regard.

Scottish Government Staff

George Foulkes (Lothians) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-9955 by John Swinney on 3 March 2008, when the Cabinet Secretary will write to me and whether the information on turnover of staff will be published.

John Swinney: I refer the member to the letter issued on 12 November 2008. A copy of which has been placed in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. numbers 45492).

Scottish Water

Elaine Murray (Dumfries) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had with Scottish Water about its recent pay offer to staff.

Stewart Stevenson: Scottish Water, along with all other public sector bodies in Scotland, is subject to the Scottish Government’s policy on public sector pay. Following discussions with ministers and officials, Scottish Water has agreed with the government the parameters of its pay remit in accordance with the maximum allowed in the policy.

Smoking

George Foulkes (Lothians) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what assessment has been made of the impact of the ban on smoking in public places on the (a) prevalence of smoking among and (b) health of (i) pregnant women and (ii) the total population and what assessment has been of similar experiences in other countries.

Shona Robison: Although the smoke-free laws are undoubtedly the most important piece of public health legislation for a generation, they form part of a much wider tobacco control strategy, including programmes targeted specifically at reducing smoking among pregnant women, which is being pursued by the Scottish Government to drive down smoking prevalence across the population. For this reason, it is not possible to make a specific assessment of the unique contribution the smoking ban has had on smoking prevalence or to point to specific evidence showing that the smoking ban has accelerated the rate of decline.

  Nevertheless, from the results available to date from the national evaluation of Scotland's smoke-free legislation to assess its impact in the short and longer terms which is being conducted by the Clean-air Legislation Evaluation (CLEAN) Collaboration, Scotland is already beginning to reap the benefits of the smoking ban. For example, there is evidence of a 17% reduction in admissions for heart attacks among non-smokers to nine Scottish hospitals and of almost a 40% reduction in second hand smoke exposure in both non-smoking adults and children. Moreover, and importantly, there is evidence of a change in the cultural acceptability of smoking.

  The Scottish Government wishes to capitalise on this shift in cultural attitudes to smoking, by stepping up action to stop people starting to smoke in the first place. In May 2008 we published a new smoking prevention action plan Scotland's Future is Smoke-free which sets out an ambitious programme of measures designed specifically to dissuade children and young people from smoking.

  As far as international experience is concerned, a US study found a 4% reduction in smoking prevalence after the introduction of the smoking ban in New York. However, the ban was accompanied by an increase in the cost of tobacco which is also a factor in smoking reduction, and it is impossible to disentangle the relative contribution of each policy to the decline in smoking prevalence witnessed in New York.

Smoking

George Foulkes (Lothians) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what targets exist for reducing smoking and what progress has been made toward achieving them.

Shona Robison: The Scottish Government is committed to reducing the smoking rate for adults aged 16 and over to 22% by 2010. The longer term trend in smoking prevalence is clearly downwards, with rates decreasing from 30.4% in 1999 to 24.7% in 2007.

  The Scottish Government is further committed to reducing smoking during pregnancy from 23.8% in 2004 to 20% in 2010. The overall percentage of women smoking at the time of their first antenatal booking has decreased consistently from 29.0% in 1995 to 21.7% in 2006 and a low of 20.9% in 2007. However, it should be noted that the percentage of ‘unknowns’ has risen from 5% in 1995 to 9.4% in 2006 and 11.9% in 2007 and that this may include a proportion of smokers.

  In the recently published, Scotland’s Future is Smoke-free (May 2008), the Scottish Government set new separate targets for boys and girls aged 13 and 15 and for 16 to 24-year-olds as set out below:

  http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2008/05/19144342/0/

  To reduce the level of smoking amongst:

  13-year-old girls from 5% in 2006 to 3% in 2014

  13-year-old boys from 3% in 2006 to 2% in 2014

  15-year-old girls from 18% in 2006 to 14% in 2014

  15-year-old boys from 12% in 2006 to 9% in 2014

  16 to 24-year-olds from 26.5% in 2006 to 22.9% in 2012.

Smoking

George Foulkes (Lothians) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what arrangements exist for the monitoring of the prevalence of smoking among pregnant women.

Shona Robison: Smoking history is recorded at the first antenatal booking appointment. This information is used as an indicator of prevalence of smoking among pregnant women. Data collected on the national smoking cessation database provides information on the number of pregnant women attempting to quit smoking through NHS smoking cessation services.

Teachers

Jamie McGrigor (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to secure a more balanced gender ratio in the education sector by exposing male pupils to relevant educational role models during their formative years, thus promoting a higher rate of male school leavers entering higher and further education.

Maureen Watt: A new teacher recruitment campaign will be launched in the new year which will deliberately target males in an attempt to encourage them to consider primary teaching as a career. The campaign will also continue to promote the teaching profession to pupils and students in schools, colleges and universities.

Thrombosis

Nanette Milne (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how much has been invested in raising awareness of the dangers of thrombosis, including deep vein thrombosis, in the last five years.

Shona Robison: In April 2007, the Scottish Government awarded Lifeblood, the Thrombosis Charity, a £15,000 grant to develop a general information leaflet on DVT and to promote awareness of thrombosis. This leaflet has been distributed to all GP Practices across Scotland.

  Additionally, the Scottish Government has devoted a significant amount of time and effort to raising awareness of the dangers of thrombosis and DVT which cannot be quantified because it forms an integral part of our work on the prevention of cardiovascular disease, such as the Keep Well programme. Nor is it possible to quantify the work of the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network in developing and revising of its clinical guideline on prophylaxis of Venous Thromboembolism.

Thrombosis

Nanette Milne (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how much will be invested in raising awareness of the dangers of thrombosis, including deep vein thrombosis, in 2009.

Shona Robison: The Scottish Government will continue to invest in a wide range of work aimed at the prevention of cardiovascular disease, in particular, given that the majority of deaths from thrombosis are associated with heart attacks or strokes, the revision of our national CHD and stroke strategy.

  During 2009, NHS boards will be investing in the production for their area of the standard DVT information leaflet issued by the Chief Medical Officer and the chair of NHS Quality Improvement Scotland (NHS QIS) in January 2008.

  NHS QIS, through the work of the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network, will be consulting extensively on its revised Guideline on prophylaxis of DVT and the management of pulmonary embolism.

Thrombosis

Nanette Milne (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to advise the general public of the dangers of thrombosis, including deep vein thrombosis.

Shona Robison: The Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN) is reviewing SIGN Guideline 62 on Prophylaxis of Venous Thromboembolism and is using this opportunity to incorporate recommendations on diagnosis and management of deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism into a single document. Consultation on the draft Guideline is expected to take place during 2009. SIGN will, as is its general practice, produce a version of the final Guideline suited to the needs of the general public.

  As an interim measure until the publication of the revised SIGN guideline, the Chief Medical Officer (CMO) and the Chairman of NHS Quality Improvement Scotland (QIS) wrote to NHS Boards, asking them to adopt for local use a standard patient information leaflet on the prevention and management of DVT. NHS QIS will produce a further report on progress on this issue, which will be sent to the CMO in December. 

  We are also considering how best to follow up with GPs the availability of the Lifeblood patient information leaflet on thrombosis awareness which was issued in the spring of this year for display in GP practices.

  The majority of deaths from thrombosis are caused by clots in the coronary arteries, which result in heart attacks, and clots in the brain, which cause certain types of stroke. CHD and stroke continue to be clinical priorities for NHSScotland, and we are in the process of revising our national CHD and stroke strategy, which will have a strong emphasis on prevention.

Tourism

John Park (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will ask the newly established task group on hospitality and tourism training to re-examine the decision to remove funding from tourism and hospitality adult apprenticeships.

Maureen Watt: The purpose of the task group on hospitality and tourism training is to look into qualifications issues in order for Scottish ministers to consider what action may be required. It will:

  Identify what hospitality and tourism qualifications are available in Scotland, and advise Scottish ministers on how relevant, responsive and flexible they are:

  Establish how many and what type of hotel school developments are currently in development or under consideration in Scotland and advise on how these can support the needs of the industry, and

  Summarise, for the industry, the roles of the respective public bodies in relation to qualifications development, validation and funding.

  Key stakeholders in education and training and the Scottish tourism industry are represented on the group which will report back in mid December 2008. It would be inappropriate for Scottish ministers to pre-empt this report.

  It may interest the member to note that in October 2008, Food Manufacturing was one of the first MA frameworks at SVQ level 2 to be approved in Scotland by the Modern Apprenticeship Group ensuring that we have the most appropriate training opportunities available to individuals working in the food and drink sector.

Transport

Des McNulty (Clydebank and Milngavie) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive on what date in November 2008 it expects to publish the strategic transport projects review.

Stewart Stevenson: It is expected that there will be an announcement in Parliament on the outcome of the strategic transport projects review before the end of the year, with a date yet to be determined.

Transport

Jamie McGrigor (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what recent discussions it has had with representatives of Argyll and Bute Council and other local stakeholders about the desire of the Luing community to secure a fixed link for the island.

Stewart Stevenson: Responsibility and funding for a new fixed link or an improved ferry service to Luing rests with Argyll and Bute Council. The Scottish Government would welcome progress and has encouraged an early solution through discussions with FLAG, a representative group of islanders, and the Council.

  The Scottish Government recently commenced a comprehensive review of ferry services in Scotland. This will include policy consideration of alternatives to ferry services such as fixed links where appropriate.

Transport

Jamie McGrigor (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what progress is being made towards achieving a fixed link, or other permanent transport solution, for the island of Luing.

Stewart Stevenson: Responsibility and funding for a new fixed link or an improved ferry service to Luing rests with Argyll and Bute Council. The Scottish Government would welcome early progress in taking improvements forward and has already made a £1.6 million funding contribution available.

  The Scottish Government recently commenced a comprehensive review of ferry services in Scotland. This will include policy consideration of alternatives to ferry services such as fixed links where appropriate.

Vaccinations

Gavin Brown (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what percentage of people most at risk in the Lothians has received flu vaccinations in each of the last three years, broken down by local authority area.

Shona Robison: Information relating to flu vaccine uptake is collected by NHS Board area and not local authority area. Uptake figures in the NHS Lothian area for those aged 65 and over in each of the last three years is as follows:

  

 Year
 Uptake


 2005-06
 80.4%


 2006-07
 77.6%


 2007-08
 77%



  Information on the total number of people in the under 65 at risk group in any NHS board area (the denominator for any percentage calculation) is not held centrally. It is therefore not possible to calculate reliably the percentage uptake of flu vaccine on a NHS board basis. However, the total number of people vaccinated each year in each NHS board area is held centrally. For NHS Lothian these figures are as follows:

  

 Year
 Number of Vaccinations


 2005-06
 32,293


 2006-07
 25,266


 2007-08
 30,883

Wildlife

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive when it expects the proposals announced on 20 February 2008 to combat illegal snaring to be fully implemented.

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what timetable it has set for introduction of compulsory fitting of identification tags on all legal snares.

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what timetable it has set for compulsory introduction of crimpled safety stops on all legal snares.

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what guidance it has issued to wildlife crime officers regarding the proposals announced on 20 February 2008 to combat illegal snaring.

Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what guidance it has issued to police officers regarding the proposals announced on 20 February 2008 to combat illegal snaring.

Michael Russell: I have established the membership of the PAW sub-group that will deal with legislation, regulation and guidance. The remit of the sub-group will be to review the operation in practice of wildlife legislation and regulations; identify areas for improvement and make recommendations, and to produce guidance for wildlife crime law enforcement practitioners, land managers and other countryside users.

  The first task of this sub group will be to bring forward legislative proposals to regulate snaring, which will include the introduction of compulsory fitting of identity tags and crimped safety stops on all legal snares.

Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body

Parliamentary Commissioners

George Foulkes (Lothians) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body whether it will give details of the commissioners for which it is responsible, also indicating their terms of office and when they are scheduled to be renewed or replaced; what consideration is being given to rationalising the system of commissioners, and whether it will make a statement to Parliament on this issue.

Mike Pringle: The SPCB is responsible for funding and setting the terms and conditions for the following officeholders:

  

 Scottish Public Services Ombudsman (Professor Alice Brown)
 Re-appointed for four years on 30 September 2007.  Professor Brown has given notice that she intends to stand down on 31 March 2009


 Scottish Information Commissioner (Mr Kevin Dunion)
 Re-appointed for four years on 24 February 2008.


 Commissioner for Children and Young People in Scotland (Professor Kathleen Marshall)
 Initial five-year appointment ends on 25 April 2009.  Professor Marshall has indicated she does not wish to be considered for a second term of office.


 Commissioner for Public Appointments in Scotland (Ms Karen Carlton)
 Initial five-year appointment ends on 31 May 2009.


Chair of the Scottish Commission for Human Rights (professor Alan Miller) andMembers of the Commission (Professor Kay Hampton, Shelagh McCall and John McNeil 
The Chair of the Commission was appointed on 3 March 2008 for an initial five-year term.The part-time members were appointed on 1 May 2008 for an initial four-year term


 Scottish Parliamentary Standards Commissioner (Dr Jim Dyer)
 Three-year re-appointment ends on 31 March 2009



  In addition, the SPCB is responsible for determining the terms and conditions of the Auditor General for Scotland (Mr Robert Black), although the SPCB is not responsible for the funding of this office. Under the present legislation there is no set date on which the Auditor General is expected to retire from office.

  I understand that the Parliamentary Bureau will be lodging a motion seeking the Parliament’s agreement to establishing an ad-hoc parliamentary committee to inquire into whether alterations should be made to the structure of the bodies supported by the SPCB. Should the Parliament agree the motion the SPCB will co-operate fully in providing any assistance it can to the committee.

  In the light of the committee inquiry, the SPCB will be considering its options for filling the forthcoming vacancies in the offices of Scottish Public Services Ombudsman, Commissioner for Children and Young People in Scotland and Scottish Parliamentary Standards Commissioner.